FOODIE FILM NIGHT

With all the children now back at school and the nights drawing in closer, it can mean only one thing; summer is leaving us and autumn is on its way. But it’s not all doom and gloom, we have come up with a list of our top 10 foodie films to try and help ease us into the season. So get snuggled up on your sofa and enjoy!

The One Hundred Foot Journey

There are still glimpses of summer out there (when it’s not raining!) so this is the perfect one to start you off. Spend a few hours in the idyllic south of France with the eccentric Kadam family and stubborn and ambitious Madame Mallory who clash when the Kadams open an Indian eatery led by son Hassan opposite Madame Mallory’s prestigious Michelin starred restaurant. However Mallory soon recognises Hassan’s potential when she samples his newly learnt Indian-French fusion cuisine and invites him to work for her to help her achieve her most sought after second Michelin star.

A Good Year

More of a wine film than a food film, but wonderful just the same. Max Skinner inherits his uncle’s house and vineyard in Provence where he spent a lot of his summers as a child. He discovers that he may take to the French, laid-back style of life as he starts to renovate the estate with the initial intention of selling it. Enjoy with a good bottle of red wine and dream that one day you too will own a chateau to retreat to in the summer…

Chocolat

Do not watch this film without having any chocolate in the house, you have been warned! Vianne and her daughter Anouk travel to the sleepy and very Catholic French town of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes and cause a stir by opening a chocolate shop during Lent. This film encompasses everything a good food film should be with chocolate scenes that will leave you drooling. We always wonder which chocolate Vianne would think was our favourite when she looked into her spinning plate.

Julie and Julia

Julie Powell takes the mission upon herself to master all of Julia Child’s 524 recipes in 365 days whilst blogging about it on he way. The film is entwined with the story of the eccentric Julia Child’s life. Maybe this film will inspire you like our guest blog writer to Rachel who cooked Lorraine Pascale’s Fast, Fresh and Easy Food cookbook from cover to cover?! One thing you will learn from this film is that you can never have too much butter in your life!

Ratatouille

It’s a Pixar film so what is not to love?! Remy is a food obsessed rat with a sophisticated palate who help turn Linguini – a young kitchen worker at a famous French restaurant into a bright, talented chef and create the restaurant’s new signature dish, ratatouille. Even the animated food looks delicious!

Chef

This is an upbeat and colourful film that will get you craving Cuban food! When chef Carl loses his job at the restaurant he works at, he decides to hit the road with his friend and son in a food truck selling delicious Cuban sandwiches. We also love the scene where he makes a really simple bowl of spaghetti to impress a Scarlett Johansson, you can almost hear yourself sucking up the pasta!

Toast

This is a good sunday afternoon movie which depicts the childhood and life of the fabulous Nigel Slater. This film really celebrates home cooking (even if it is by the mean Mrs Potter) from delectable lemon meringue pies topped with a mountain of mallowy meringue to the very simple but just as wonderful, toast.

Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory

Another classic kids film (the original film that is) adapted from Roald Dahl’s famous book . Who has not dreamt of going to the Chocolate Room, eating the sweet grass, scooping marshmallow out of toadstools and picking gummy bears off the trees? Mike TV was always our favourite…

The Lunchbox

An emotive and quite heartbreaking love story between the unhappily married Ila and Saajan, an almost retired widower. Ila’s lunches are mistakenly sent to Saajan’s office and they strike up a friendship through a series of hand written letters to one another, snugly tucked up within roti breads. The lunches she prepares for him in his tiffin lunchbox really give you a craving for Indian food and make you want to hand in your tupperware boxes for a tiffin instantly. Get transported to India with this one and enjoy with a cup of Chai tea, the cardomom will make you feel as if you are almost there.

The Trip

Technically not a film, but if you watched all the series it would be longer than a film! Probably not as mouth-wateringly foodie as the others either, but it does make you want to go out for a good meal and Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon eat in some really excellent restaurants – a few of which we have eaten in too in the North of England and reviewed on here. Some of the scenery they drive through too is really breathtaking, it makes you feel like you have been for a Sunday scenic drive. Tag along with the comedy duo for a feast of impressions, silliness and a little bit of drama.